connecting people,opportunities and ideas

Get a special discount if you are a member of our group and sign up early.  We are co-promoting it and would love to make this a big success as our first in-person gathering for our members.  Based on the success of this event, we will be taking it to cities throughout the world where we have members. http://www.powersponsorshipdownloads.com/powersponsorship/PowerSponsorshipWkshpsLA.pdf

All of the workshop details are online. The central point for information is http://www.powersponsorship.com/sponsorship-workshops-2010-la.html. You can also go straight to the Eventbrite registration page and find all the details and pricing, http://powersponsorship.eventbrite.com

To get $50 off the price of each workshop, enter the code: insights. Combine this with the early bird discount, for a total discount of $100, but not with the charitable organization discount (they already get a $50 discount).

I look forward to seeing you there!

Great new jobs, blogs, articles, conferences and member profile.  read it here and share your thoughts!  Please share with industry associates who may be interested in the material or joining our group.

Click here to read our latest newsletter To subscribe, please go to www.sponsorshipinsights.com/blog

Summertime = heat, swimming to keep cool, relaxation and reflection (at least the last two weeks of August).  I recently read a couple of books – The Waxman Report and The Alchemist, by Paul Coelho.  I won’t review the Waxman Report in this space as it is probably too political for some of my readers.

However, The Alchemist got me to thinking a bit and how it relates to sponsorship.  Okay, full disclosure, I am always thinking about sponsorship!

According to Paul, in order to fulfill your Personal Legend, one must be also connected to the Soul of the World and know The Language of The World.  To get connected in this deep way, one must be committed to the journey and the process and facing the inherint challenges.  Wow, pretty deep.

In sponsorship, this means being an evangelist of the medium, truly and authetically building integrated platforms for brand promotion, through creatively leveraging the asset or property.  In order to do this, one needs training and understanding and of course, being connected.

A couple of interesting ways to train and get connected are coming up soon.

• LA Office is hosting their annual conference in Hollywood, CA.  They are offering free movie passes for brand representatives who want to take advantage of the special rate for our readers.  Just click on this link and type in the word SPONSORSHIP, when booking.
• IEG has expanded their training and are offering a couple of unique courses and a combined course which brings together many of the necessary tools for sponsorship success. Their next one is on Sponsorship Activation.  Click here to register and find out more information.

Both of these institutions have helped me learn, grow and get more connected.  I hope this is helpful and look forward to your feedback!

We hope you like it and it helps you connect with others, find new ideas and become more effective in your job.

Click here to read it

Lesa Ukman recently blogged about the importance of activating sponsorships with meaning and delivering value for the consumer.  As usual, she has her pulse on the beat of the industry.  Here is a link to the blog

Lesa’s Blog

From a personal experience and perspective, I am a big fan of sponsorship summits.  It is a great way to take some time out and get together in-person with sponsors.  The benefits are obvious in developing a more personal connection and the more connected they are the more likely they are to renew.  We all know renewal is usually preferable to getting out and pitching a category.

I attended a webinar hosted by IEG today and want to share a  few key takeaways.

Goals: (more…)

Whenever I am stymied about my daily blog update, I always am able to find inspiration and keen insight from Jason Peck. He is a social media guru and stays on top of sponsorship and social media. Recently, he wrote about a sponsorship software fulfillment program that helps sponsors sell and renew sponsorships. It helps brands and agencies justify their spends.

Check out his post here.

As always, I welcome your feedback.

I attended the Croc’s AVP Volleyball Tour event in Riverside, CA on Saturday and wanted to share a couple of quick takes:

• Before going, I went to their website and found a really cool video series they are producing with Holly McPeak, called Transitions. It is the story of 8, hand-picked, woman’s indoor players who are trying to make it on the AVP Tour.  I could imagine it  as an American Idol style series, with eliminations each week and the prize is the chance to play in a tourney with Holly for the winner.  The sponsorship potential of this is great as it has all the right elements and could integrate some interactive elements and new advertisers.

• Paul Mitchell Hair Care Products had a new activation which looked great.  They work with local salons to provide on-site haircuts and beauty demonstrations and donate all proceeds to the Boy and Girls Clubs.
• Croc’s had some new footwear products, which were a bit hit and totally different from the ones they have always been identified.
• The downtown venue really showcased what a neat city Riverside is and that what the purpose of the presenting sponsorship of their Convention and Visitors Bureau.
• I talked and toured the venue with one sponsor, Bud Luppino of Bud’s Tire and Wheel.  Keep your eye on this category.  Bud said, he has broken sales records for the past 5 months.  Think about it, with the downturn in the economy, people are not buying news cars, so they need to maintain their existing ones.  This will be a hot category to watch/pitch.

Before the beginning of the current NHL season, the league created a unique partnership with Scotiabank and the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC). Together they founded the first ever NHL award to be chosen by and presented by the fans: the Scotiabank NHL Fan Fav Award. It will be awarded to the player the fans deem the best overall regular season performer.

“We are excited to work with Scotiabank on this innovative initiative that brings NHL fans together”, said Keith Wachtel, Senior Vice-President, Corporate Sales & Marketing for the NHL.

At the end of each week, fans are able to log onto NHL.com and choose the three best overall performers for the week. Those three players are revealed on both NHL.com and CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada every Saturday night.

When the regular season is over, several NHL experts will limit the long list of fans’ nominees to 10 players. Fans will then have a chance to vote for any of the 10 players in the same format as throughout the season. After the Stanley Cup playoffs, one of the voters will be randomly chosen to present the Scotiabank NHL Fan Fav Award to the winner at the NHL Awards live on CBS.

John Doig, the Senior Vice-President of Marketing for Scotiabank added, “Canadians are passionate about hockey and this is a brand new way for them to really get in the game.”

This project allows for fans to have an immediate personal connection with the league. What do you think?

Do you think we’ll be seeing any other leagues trying this approach?

With leagues like the NBA rebuilding their image, do you think instituting this award would result in more viewership and appreciation for the leagues?

Is the NHL graspng at straws or being innovative?